Integrated Soil Fertility Management: Impact of <i>Mucuna</i> and <i>Tithonia</i> Biomass on Tomato (<i>Lycopersicon esculentum</i> L.) Performance in Smallholder Farming Systems

Abstract

Many views, paradigms and concepts have been advocated in recent decades on soil fertility and soil conservation across the globe in order to provide sustainable solutions to the rising food and nutrition insecurity while preserving the natural resource base. Meanwhile, food and nutrition security in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is mainly achieved through smallholder farming systems that are characterized by poor and declining soil fertility, which often leads to low crop yields and low income. Hence, a field trial was established to evaluate the impact of integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) practices on tomato yield and the farm-scale income in smallholder farming systems. The ISFM trial comprised a control with no input, mineral fertilizer, and organic treatments comprising sole Mucuna and Tithonia biomasses as well as their combination (Mucuna + Tithonia). Generally, tomato performance was better with organic plant biomass amendments, with significantly higher (P < 0.001) tomato yield for Mucuna + Tithonia and sole Tithonia, followed by sole Mucuna and mineral fertilizer compared to the control. Meanwhile in comparison to the control, Mucuna + Tithonia and sole Tithonia recorded 3.5 and 3.4 t ha −1 more yield, respectively, which was about twice the additional yield for sole Mucuna and mineral fertilizer with 1.8 and 1.5 t ha −1 , respectively (Tukey's HSD, P < 0.05). Similarly, the farm-scale income increased significantly (P < 0.001) for organic plant biomass, and it was most pronounced for Mucuna + Tithonia and sole Tithonia, followed by sole Mucuna and mineral fertilizer, as compared to the control (Tukey's HSD, P < * Corresponding author. C. Ngosong et al. 1177 0.05). A positive Spearman RankCorrelation was recorded between the ISFM treatments and tomato yield or the farm-scale income (r = 0.76, P < 0.05), and between tomato yield and the farmscale income (r = 0.99, P < 0.05). These results imply that smallholder farmers in SSA can effectively use the combination of Mucuna + Tithonia biomass materials or their sole applications as basal mulch to improve tomato production. Thus, these organic amendments could be an alternative and sustainable integrated soil fertility management strategy to boost tomato production and farm-scale income without jeopardizing the sustainability of the environment. However, this requires more efforts to adapt the different ISFM techniques to the specific needs of smallholder farmers, coupled with effective dissemination strategies that facilitate knowledge transfer and technology adoption.

The impact of conventional and organic farming on soil biodiversity conservation: a case study on termites in the long-term farming systems comparison trials in Kenya

“…Refs. [34][35][36] have reported in earlier studies that such environments are ideal for termite populations to thrive.…”

Recent Advances in the Use of Tithonia diversifolia Green Manure for Soil Fertility Management in Africa: A Review

“…Tithonia also increased yields of vegetables such as Celosia in Nigeria (Babajide et al, 2012), rape in Zimbabwe (Chikuvire et al, 2013) and Kales in Kenya (Mwangi and Mathenge 2014). Yields of tomatoes increased by 130% with application of tithonia compared to the control with no nutrient inputs in Cameroon (Ngosong et al, 2015). In Nigeria, the yield of okra was significantly higher in soil under tithonia fallow than under spear grass (Agbede et al, 2014).…”

“…Despite tithonia being used on the so-called high value crops to circumvent the low returns when used on maize, very few studies have conducted economic analyses on these crops. One study with tomatoes in Cameroon (Ngosong et al, 2015) however reported very high returns (8456 USD). The BCRs for this study were however not reported hence making it difficult to determine the potential for adoption of tithonia technology for tomato production.…”

Soil Type and Amendment Influence Growth and Yield of Tomatoes Lycopersicon esculentum L. in the Humid Mt Cameroon Region

“…Organic inputs and resources are able to sustain agricultural production in most areas. The use of organic inputs such as Tithonia and Mucuna mulches has been shown to be beneficial in tomato production (Ngosong et al, 2015). Some studies have advocated the use of both inorganic and organic soil amendments to increase outputs during crop production.…”

“…Integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) is especially important in production of vegetable crops which have short production cycles and require adequate supply of soil nutrients to improve crop productivity and ensure sustainable production. The ISFM is a set of agronomic practices adapted to local conditions to maximize nutrient use efficiency and sustainability (Ngosong et al, 2015). This is especially important for crops like Lycopersicon esculentum L. (tomato) with a short production cycle.…”